Summer’s Last Splash (09/08)
By Bridget MacMillan
Labor Day weekend has passed, unofficially marking the end to summer. Children return to school, organizations that take a break during the summer months reactivate, and calendars are once again filled with meetings, sports events, and appointments. The vibe of summer, relaxation, sunshine, and long days, is replaced with the pace of autumn, crisper weather, cool breezes, and shorter days. This summer has been a magnificent one for me! One to savor! It has been a summer full of sunshine, laughs and activities. Especially in contrast to last winter, which was dreary, long, and oppressive. Usually I look forward to autumn and the change of seasons. But not this year. I am not ready to give up summer yet! I still want to try new things and laugh in the face of danger (all right, that may sound a bit extreme, but not long ago I was stuck on a roller coaster staring straight down at the ground for 15 minutes! It was either laugh or cry, and I did not want to frighten the other riders by losing it!) If you are like me, and you are looking to squeeze one more new experience in before autumn, let me suggest these three activities. They do not require a lot of time or investment on your part, and they may be somewhat trivial or silly, but that’s what makes them perfect as the last splash of summer!
Social networking—if you are still on the sidelines about the value and usefulness of this experience, an easy and fun way to test it is through Twitter. Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing? Each post is limited to 140 characters, so a person can not get carried away. It's how a few friends across the country and I stay connected. I have gone days without posting and have not felt regret. But it was a great tool I used to communicate during a recent cross-country road trip. I have had fun following the adventures of my friends in different cities. You do not have to create a home page filled with a profile of your likes and dislikes, past experiences, or anything. You create a user name and you can add a picture to identify yourself, but that’s all the time and energy you need to invest. You can access it through your cell phone which makes it convenient to use during the train commute. It’s quick and easy. And quite honestly, it’s fun! Explore Twitter at www.twitter.com.
Graphic novels—I last read comic books as a child. It was part of the routine of my home that if you were ill, my dad brought you comic books to help pass the time. I remember receiving “The Archies,” “Richie Rich,” and “Scooby Doo” stories. But my love affair with reading has always been with novels—thick, rich, heavy tomes. Until this summer! Two friends recommended a graphic novel series titled “Fables” by Bill Willingham. I wanted a change from my usual, and I wanted to experience first hand the graphic novel, so I began reading the collections of this series of comic books. And now I am hooked! The overarching story is that characters we know and love, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Goldilocks, Little Red Riding Hood, etc., now live in New York City. The stories are complex and well told, the graphics are amazing, and add so much to the story. It was a refreshing and fun reading experience! And perfect for the summer. Give graphic novels a try if you want to stretch your reading boundaries! Many libraries now carry graphic novels and collections, as well as most bookstores.
New Browser from GoogeTM—Google Chrome was released on September 2nd. You can learn about it through a comic book created especially to tell this story: http://www.google.com/googlebooks/chrome/. You can download Chrome at http://www.google.com/chrome, and begin using it, exploring with it, or playing with it right now. Chrome is one last new toy to try before returning to day-to-day responsibilities. Who knows, it may actually become one of the tools you use on a daily basis!
Summer may be waning, but you can linger in its shadow by trying something fresh and new and fun before the sunshine fades!
